Chapter 3 - Someone Knew
I showed Emily the message.
Her face drained.
"Who knows you're here?"
"Very few people."
"Derek?"
"Apparently he doesn't even know what I do."
That was true.
Derek had called me unemployed once.
My mother told me about it afterward.
I hadn't corrected him.
Military rank isn't something I use at Thanksgiving dinner.
To my family, I was Daniel.
Not General Daniel Harrington.
Not the four-star officer whose decisions could move thousands of personnel.
Just Daniel.
But somebody knew.
My phone rang.
Colonel Marcus Reed.
I answered.
"Sir."
"Marcus."
"We have a problem."
I stood.
"What kind?"
"The kind that makes me ask why your name appeared in a private corporate intelligence report."
I looked toward the stairs.
"Whose report?"
"Working on it."
"Send me everything."
"Already did."
I opened the encrypted attachment.
There it was.
My photograph.
Career history.
Family connections.
My parents' property.
Emily's marriage.
Derek's companies.
Somebody had researched the entire Harrington family.
At the bottom was one sentence.
POTENTIAL OBSTACLE: GEN. DANIEL HARRINGTON.
Emily whispered.
"What is that?"
"A target assessment."
Her hand flew to her mouth.
I continued reading.
WCG Capital appeared seventeen times.
Then another name caught my attention.
Charles Vane.
I knew that name.
Not personally.
But I knew it.
A defense contractor investigated three years earlier for procurement fraud.
Charges had never stuck.
Derek walked into the kitchen.
He stopped when he saw my phone.
"What are you doing?"
I locked the screen.
"Talking."
"About me?"
"Should I be?"
He walked closer.
"You're creating problems in a family you barely visit."
Emily stood.
"This is my family."
Derek turned toward her.
"Stay out of this."
I moved between them.
He looked up at me.
"You really like doing that."
"Get used to it."
He smiled.
Then he said something interesting.
"You military guys always think intimidation solves everything."
Emily stared at him.
I did too.
Derek's smile disappeared.
I hadn't told him I was military.
He realized his mistake immediately.
Too late.
I stepped closer.
"How do you know I'm military?"
Derek said nothing.
I held his gaze.
Then his phone rang.
He glanced at the screen.
For half a second, I saw the caller's name.
C. VANE.
Derek declined the call.
May you like
I smiled.
"Now we're getting somewhere."
